Continuing with my sketchbook at our Tuesday art gathering, I experimented with hatching, as opposed to stippling, for creating shape and texture in ink drawings.
I took my inspiration from old school techniques, as found in illustrated text books of the 50s and 60s, and a couple of modern ink artists.
The basic idea is for the lines to accentuate the form, creating the illusion of three dimensions, shading, and texture. One layer is called hatching, but the more layers added in different directions – called cross hatching – the more the shape is defined.
I chose to draw a peony this time. I used a 0.05 fine liner by Uni Pin.
I started with the flower. The difficulty here was to show tone, yet still have sufficient variation to give form. The leaves were simpler as they are not the main focus for the drawing. Lastly I added shadows. The principle is that shadows are darker the shaded areas, so hatching in four directions was necessary to get the required definition.
I am pleased with the image, it is dramatic with plenty of contrast. I shall be using this technique again. What do you think?
Pen and Lens Artwork 